Development and test results of the low-energy demonstration accelerator (LEDA) proton injector on a 1.25 MeV cw radio frequency quadrupole

The low-energy demonstration accelerator (LEDA) 75-keV proton injector is being developed for tests of high-current (100-mA) cw linacs. The injector comprises a microwave proton source and a space-charge neutralized magnetic low-energy beam-transport system (LEBT). The LEDA injector has been configured to provide flexible 50-keV beam matching into a cw 1.25-MeV radio-frequency quadrupole (RFQ) brought from Chalk River Laboratories (CRL). The LEBT has two solenoid focus magnets separated by 117 cm. Between the solenoids are two steering magnets and diagnostic stations for measuring the beam current, profile, and position. The ion-source extraction system was modified to a 50-keV triode to test the injector/RFQ system. Beam-matching tests showed that injector-RFQ transmission is 90% for 50-mA RFQ current. At the RFQ design current of 75 mA the beam transmission decreased to 80--85%. Optimized injector tuning led to 100-mA beam accelerated through the RFQ